Truro Cathedral - Volunteer Cathedral Guide

Role Summary

Regular Tours: to provide visitors with a way of interpreting the building through the delivery of a specially designed guided tour. Regular Tours take place from April to October at 11am every Monday to Thursday incl. (accept on Bank Holidays).  Booked Tours: to welcome pre-booked groups to the Cathedral, and conduct a tour on a specialised subject such as Stained Glass, Treasures, Victorian Gothic, Cornish Saints, ensuring the group have the best visitor experience possible.

Duties:

Provide a warm welcome to those on Cathedral tours • Lead a clear and interesting tour of the Cathedral answering questions and ensuring material is in line with Truro Cathedral’s key messages. • Refer any unknown queries or concerns to the appropriate member of staff. • Complete any relevant documentation.

Skills & knowledge required:

Good communication skills and an ability to present confidently to a group of people as well as individuals • A welcoming, friendly and outgoing manner with a positive, confident disposition • An interest in history and a willingness to learn about the history of the cathedral and its work, and to convey and interpret this with interest and enthusiasm • Well organised, methodical, punctual • Aware of Health & Safety issues, responding flexibly and appropriately to different situations • Maintain and develop knowledge and techniques.

Qualifications required: 

No formal qualifications are required.

Training requirements:

New Guides will undertake induction and training over a 2-hour session delivered by an experienced long-standing Guide. This will include a detailed explanation and discussion of the role, duties, skills required and a tour of the Cathedral. Practical matters will be covered and supporting material and information will be provided. Before new Guides lead their first tour alone, they will attend two tours, each led by a different, experienced Guide •  All Cathedral volunteers are required to complete an application form, and undertake the required safeguarding training, and volunteers are appointed subject to two satisfactory references. • Guides are expected to attend twice yearly Guides’ meetings, one of which takes the form of a workshop • Ongoing support is given to all volunteers by the Volunteer Manager. 

Safeguarding training requirements:

Basic Awareness and Foundations Safeguarding training - both these modules are completed online via the Church of England Online Safeguarding Training Portal (links to this platform will be given during recruitment). This role does not require a DBS check.

Physical requirements:

This role requires standing and walking around the Cathedral for the duration of the tour which is approximately one hour long.

Guides must comply at all times with the cathedral’s policies which can be found at www.trurocathedral.org.uk  and have empathy with Truro Cathedral’s Vision, Ambition and Values.

Parking:

Parking may be available in the Cathedral car park but only on a first come first served basis and only while performing volunteer duties, not at any other time. The car park now operates a number plate recognition system, so if you wish to park in the car park, you will need to enter your registration number each time you volunteer on either of the tablets in the cathedral or the cathedral office.